It's All Good

Too many times songwriters feel they have to have some sort of structure, some sort of plan to work from or by. If we remember that most hits are rewritten, not written, we can quickly get over that silly notion. Besides just jamming or writing free verse, though, let's just do what comes naturally, just to get something done today. Surely, you can think of something you like to do musically that will get you smiling and moving for at least a few minutes. Here are a few ideas to get you to accomplish this.

BE TRITE

I know this goes against the grain of some folks, but remember we are probably going to rewrite this anyway, so it really doesn't matter. Use a bunch of your favorite lines, favorite riffs, and all in your favorite chord progression, mode or key. Keep the recorder running, and just do something, anything. Play a line from a favorite song, and then do it again, totally wrong, like a bad karaoke singer or over the top jazz artist. Stop, start again, stop again as many times as you like. Say nonsense things just to do something with the rhythm. Play some totally ordinary blues progression and sing some really stupid blues lines about what your neighbor does that really bugs you until it makes you laugh. Write as many notes about what you did and why and how you did them-you might just come up with a lot of good stuff you can use later. Remember, in this case, your editor is your friend, and you can edit this silly later, but not now.

BE EXHUBERANT

Don't hold back. Write the biggest words if a big word fits. Sing that high note, whisper a line, or whatever you want. Bang on notes hard, or just whimper them out. As before, you can always tone things down later, but make this a fun session, not something that sounds like you are straining to lift a hair. If you like, though, you can just sound like you are straining to lift a hair-that could be fun, too, if it fits the mood you are trying to create with the song you are working on.

MOVE AROUND

It never hurts to work on your stage show, either. Try jumping around while you sing out nonsense stuff, spin around with your guitar, play your keyboard with your knees, or practice flipping your drumsticks between fills. The stuff you can do while playing this can really help you figure out what works and might not onstage. As you move, too, you might accidentally hit a note that sounds incredibly bad, or incredibly good, and you may just light onto a new song idea just by what is possible while doing the twist. It may also be fun to figure out how to use those nasty feedback squeals you get when dancing too close to the guitarist's amp into the song. Howling out your anguish when the drummer hits the cymbals right next to your ear can add comic relief as well as something the audience can participate in.

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